CHASING OSCAR - Road to Madness

ANNE BANCROFT 

as Mother Miriam Ruth in AGNES OF GOD (1985)
____________________________________________________________________

When a dead newborn is found, wrapped in bloody sheets, in the bedroom wastebasket of a young novitiate, psychiatrist Martha Livingston is called in to determine if the seemingly innocent novice, who knows nothing of sex or birth, is competent enough to stand trial for the murder of the baby. While searching for the answer that her supervisors want, Dr. Livingston finds herself inevitably drawn into searching for the truth about the baby's conception and death. Despite the lack of cooperation that she receives from her own organization and the church, itself, she eventually discovers more than she may have bargained for.

"So, you have questions. Fire away!"

                                         - Mother Miram Ruth

For her last Oscar nomination (which should not be remembered), Anne Bancroft plays a controlling and protective nun who tries to protect a novice nun who gives birth and insists that the dead
child was the result of a virgin conception. Before saying anything, I would like to say that I’m a big fan of Anne Bancroft. At first, I think her role is very demanding, but Anne Bancroft chose the easy way to let the role one-dimensional, with no thickness. Then, the role could have been great if she had chosen to be ambivalent, the character should have been torn between the beliefs and the truth of the modern world, between faith and reason but Anne Bancroft does not show any of these sides. Anne could have expressed in her acting the possibilities of miracles while recognizing the realities of today's world, of which the mother superior is painfully aware. There is no subtlety in her performance, and she avoids all challenges. The great things in the film are the conflict between mother superior and the psychiatrist, it’s an intense relation, well played by both actresses with rivalry, understanding but also the fears of each worlds and also the extreme devotion of Mother Superior to protect Agnes.   


[I think the performance of Fonda should have deserved more credits, and Meg Tilly gives the standout performance, she shows the naivety of her character beautifully. I have never seen that, I think it’s hard to seem naïve, innocent and a bit silly. The movie is easy to watch but it’s a bit silly, and I don’t see the necessity of this kind of film.  ]

"Deadly - despite good work from Anne Bancroft and Meg Tilly, the film is grotesquely directed and the spiritual debate is sensationalized beyond all reason."

                                                                                               - Nick Davis

Anne Bancroft doesn't give a substantial performance, she could have looked deeper on the psychology of the character to express the conflicts and the torments, but no, she avoids all challenges. It’s a one-dimensional character who should have deserved more intense dialogues, the only thing which remains great in the movie is the intense conflict between mother Superior and the psychiatrist played beautifully by Jane Fonda, who I think gave a better performance with the little she had. I respect her performance but it could have been better.

★★★★★